‘SAFEGUARDING’ ILHAN OMAR — Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced over the weekend that the Capitol Police and House sergeant-at-arms were “conducting a security assessment” to ensure Rep. Ilhan Omar’s protection amid intensifying attacks from the right — sparked in part by the president — over her controversial comments about 9/11.

A reality check: Pelosi’s announcement highlighted what Bres and Heather called an “extraordinary situation” — the House speaker is concerned for a congresswoman’s safety after an attack from the president of the United States. Pelosi wants Trump to take the video down, and the 2020 Democratic candidates took their own jabs at the president over the weekend.

Story Continued Below

Omar said late Sunday that she’s facing new and increasing death threats after Trump tweeted a video highlighting her remarks, which have come under fire from Republicans for appearing to downplay the terror attacks. The Minnesota Democrat said many of the threats “directly” reference Trump’s video. More from Bres and Heather: https://politi.co/2ZbTYQx

FIRST IN HUDDLE: PROGRESSIVES LINE UP BEHIND OMAR — It’s not just Democratic presidential candidates and congressional leaders who are rushing to Omar’s defense. More than 150 progressive leaders and groups signed a “solidarity” letter on Monday, condemning the “white supremacists and war criminals in the Trump administration” and praising Omar as a “visionary and inspiring leader.” More from your fill-in Huddle host: https://politi.co/2UzeiwCThe letter: https://politi.co/2v54kEj

Are you ready for some football? Come cheer on the U.S. Capitol Police as they square off against a team of bipartisan lawmakers and former NFL players at the 2019 Congressional Football Game. POLITICO is a proud partner of this family-friendly event, which includes entertainment and spirited competition on gridiron, and brings together Congressional and law enforcement communities in support of worthy causes including the Capital Police Memorial Fund, “Our Military Kids” and “A Advantage 4 Kids.” Kickoff is at 7PM on Tuesday, September 24th on Hotchkiss Field at Gallaudet University. LEARN MORE.

MUELLER TIME — Buckle up, folks. A redacted version of the Mueller report could come as soon as today from the Justice Department, and Washington is preparing for it exactly as Washington does. Team Trump is projecting confidence, with the president’s attorney Jay Sekulow framing it this way: “At the end of the day, it's like waiting for the jury verdict, except you know what the jury verdict is already.”

That’s probably wishful thinking. Barr seemed to indicate to Senate appropriators last week that he would not redact certain damaging information about the president. For example, we know from Barr’s summary that the special counsel uncovered evidence that Trump obstructed justice, but ultimately decided not to weigh in on whether to pursue criminal charges. Did Mueller seek to leave that question to Congress? We may soon find out.

Helluva lede from Darren Samuelsohn: “The 400-page Mueller report, expected to land this week, is the most anticipated political read since Ken Starr, Monica Lewinsky and the stained blue dress—and potentially even juicier. But how do you wring that juice out of a behemoth of a legal document, full of redactions, at the speed of social media?” https://politi.co/2UklkjU

GOOD MORNING! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill. Andrew Desiderio here, filling in for Melanie who is enjoying the beautiful weather in Miami. Your Philly sports report is mixed — the Phillies took two of three from Miami this weekend, and the Sixers barely showed up against Brooklyn in Game 1 on Saturday. Shoutout to Jimmy Butler for, indeed, showing up. (Don’t worry, folks. Melanie is back tomorrow…)

THURSDAY’S MOST CLICKED — HuffPost’s story on the surge in border crossings under Trump’s presidency was the big winner.

NUNES WATCH — House Democrats are keeping close tabs on Rep. Devin Nunes, the Intelligence Committee’s top Republican, who wants to meet privately with Attorney General William Barr about his criminal referrals to DOJ. Nunes has long accused top DOJ officials of launching politically motivated partisan investigations into the president, and the California Republican is seeking to push Barr to pursue criminal charges. Democrats are demanding that they be able to attend any such meeting between Nunes and Barr — and they stress that they have yet to see the criminal referrals. More from Kyle: https://politi.co/2Ui8rqw

DEMS TO IRS: COUGH UP THE TAX RETURNS — House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal (D-Mass.) is giving the IRS until April 23 to hand over the president’s tax returns. That was after the agency missed Neal’s initial April 10 deadline, citing consultations with the Justice Department. Still, Democrats believe they are on sound legal footing. Neal said this weekend that the administration has no basis to “question or second guess the motivations of the committee.”

Democrats don’t expect the administration to comply, but Ways and Means Committee aides cautioned that a subpoena likely wouldn’t come until lawmakers return to Washington the week of April 29. More from Aaron Lorenzo: https://politi.co/2varUzb

NOT JUST THE TAX RETURNS — House Democrats are gearing up to issue a subpoena for the president’s financial records from accounting firm Mazars USA, which asked for a so-called “friendly” subpoena in order to comply. Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) is moving forward with the subpoena without holding a full committee vote, citing the imminent two-week congressional recess.

Republicans are crying foul over the subpoena — but Democrats are determined to get their hands on the financial records, which they believe will help corroborate Michael Cohen’s allegations that Trump artificially inflated and deflated his wealth. More from your fill-in Huddle host: https://politi.co/2UZcbSc

CHILE 2019: Join APEC leaders, global CEOs, visionary entrepreneurs, and thought leaders from around the world at APEC CEO Summit Chile 2019, the largest and most influential annual meeting of business and government leaders in the Asia-Pacific region, from November 14-16. POLITICO is a premier media partner of the summit. Learn more HERE.

A TAX DAY TO FORGET — Lots of you probably got a tax cut this year thanks to the 2017 GOP tax bill. The problem for Republicans? Most Americans don’t think they got one at all, multiple polls show, and the law itself has an abysmal one-third approval rating. Trump’s reality, via Ben White: “While his personal rating on the economy remains high, his signature legislative achievement is widely viewed as a political dud…”https://politi.co/2VJSjj7

BURGESS SENDS ALONG A SCOOPLET — President Trump spoke about the "penny plan" when he visited with the Senate GOP three weeks ago, which has across-the-board spending cuts of 1 percent for several years in a row that would eventually balance the budget. Like everything Trump, he said he has something bigger: The "nickel plan," which would be cuts of 5 percent, according to attendees.

This, of course, will never happen, but it shows how eager the president is to appear tough on spending as his party tries to negotiate a budget deal that will almost certainly increase spending by virtue of working with the Democratic House.

NYT’s Glenn Thrush — “Mitch McConnell, Never a Grandstander, Learns to Play by Trump’s Rules.” https://nyti.ms/2GinCeB

TRANSITIONS

TODAY IN CONGRESS

The House meets for a pro forma session at 4:30 p.m. The Senate will hold its own pro forma session at 3:00 p.m.

AROUND THE HILL

RECESS!

TRIVIA

FRIDAY’S WINNER — Diana Deem was the lightning-fast winner on Friday morning, a mere four minutes after Huddle hit your inboxes. Rep. Michael O. (Ozzie) Myers (D-Pa.) was the lawmaker who said the famous phrase: “Money talks in this business and [B.S.] walks.”

TODAY’S QUESTION — Diana sends along this question: The statue of President Ronald Reagan in the Capitol has a non-traditional base. What material is used in that base to make it different from any other statue in the Capitol? First person to send me the correct answer gets a mention in tomorrow’s newsletter. Send your guesses my way: adesiderio@politico.com

Follow us on Twitter

Follow Us

About The Author : Andrew Desiderio

Andrew Desiderio is a congressional reporter for POLITICO, covering investigations and oversight. He joined POLITICO from The Daily Beast, where he covered Congress with a focus on national security, foreign affairs and Senate campaigns. He previously worked at BBC News and RealClearPolitics.

He is a graduate of The George Washington University’s School of Media and Public Affairs, where he studied journalism and Italian language and literature. He hails from Philadelphia and is a proud Philly sports fan.